Bauchi State was in the news late last week. The story, widely reported by both traditional news outlets and the new media, for good reasons, was that the plan by the state governor, Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed, to join the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) had collapsed.
Governor Bala Mohammed has been a linchpin of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). He served for quite some time as the chairman of the PDP Governors Forum.PDP is,of course,not PDP anymore,but no matter.
The kernel of the story about the governor in Bauchi State needs to be grasped in its full ramifications. The news was not that Bala Mohammed contemplated joining APC. Or that he was being wooed to do so.
The governor was already at the doors of the APC. He could not effectively gain entry because negotiations on the “sharing formula” could not be satisfactorily agreed upon. The phrase refers to how power will be carved out among the new and existing principalities. Not an easy task, by any chance.
The story from Bauchi did not emanate from some unconfirmed gossip reporters. The development was confirmed and indeed conveyed by sources around the governor. Indeed, the report was short of being an official statement by the PDP faction loyal to the governor in Bauchi State.
For good measures, the group declared clearly that now that negotiations with the APC had collapsed, their group, that is to say, their principal, was open to new overtures from any other political group that could meaningfully negotiate a better alliance with them. Solicitation hardly comes more straightforward.
Note, before proceeding, that setback in negotiations can always be resuscitated. Iran and the United States of America are back in Islamabad after the collapse of their first talks a fortnight ago. In other words, the negotiations between Bala Mohammed and the APC over the “sharing formula” in Bauchi State may yet be picked up and rescued. The former chairman of the PDP governors may still find his way to the APC.
On the face it, within the context of Nigeria’s prevailing political behavioural pattern, the bargaining over sharing formula between the APC and Bala Mohammed in Bauchi State may appear normal. The media that reported on the transaction hardly saw or expressed any aberration in the situation. That is what politics in Nigeria has evolved into, a free trade zone of sorts.
A deeper contemplation of the realities of the negotiations between Bala Mohammed and APC in Bauchi State, or between similar parties across Nigeria in recent times, speaks, however, to the calamity that has befallen the country, especially since the advent of Bola Tinubu at the helm. There is no more moral compass to anywhere. How then can there be redemption?
Think about it. Governor Bala Mohammed at the doors of the APC, negotiating to enter. What does anyone make of a second term state governor who has been the kingpin of the opposition party, seemingly resilient, someone who had engaged in several battles with opponents on the other side of the political divide, including with their flawed omnipotent mortal head, now ending up at the gate of the adversaries, waiting to be let in? How would he honestly be received, except with contempt?
Had negotiations gone on smoothly, this governor, this otherwise vibrant, articulate opposition leader would by now be publicly singing “on your mandate I stand” (or fall), as they inevitably must sing. It is not yet ruled out.
Think about it, just like seeing Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta state standing before Tinubu days back and miserably uttering words to the effect that the President has done marvellously well and the opposition has nothing to say except to resort to telling lies… There are, indeed, many ways to die.
While Bala Mohammed was engaged with negotiations with the APC, a political group identified with his Commissioner for Finance and Economic Development, Yakubu Adamu, issued a statement of solidarity with the governor, assuring him of their loyalty and support.
Yakubu Adamu, just for context, is the functionary that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) descended on and detained some time ago, in a said investigation of the activities of the Bala Mohammed government.
It is well known, of course, that the EFCC is independent of the APC, so that administrative brush with the Bala Mohammed government had nothing to do with party politics. This is by the way.
In their statement of support for the governor, the Yakubu Adamu Contact Group, as they identified themselves, said of Bala Mohammed, “As a visionary leader and statesman, his decisions are always guided by the overriding interest of peace, progress and prosperity… Instructively, they did not add another P, for principle.
Principle and honour have become not just endangered attributes in Nigeria as led, they have actually become unprofitably, if not liabilities. Unfortunately, most politicians lack the conviction to stand their ground.
While the actual substance of the demobilising bait administered with maximum effect on state governors by the Tinubu-led APC remains unknown, the easy capitulation of the governors testifies to character weakness and poverty of leadership in the society at the moment.
There is no doubt that Bala Mohammed has some challenges to contend with going forward. With no PDP to hold on to, as the Nyesom Wike faction of the party has expectedly brought their known aces to bear on relevant institutional fronts, and with the fundamental differences he reportedly has with an influential personality at the coalition party, the Bauchi State governor surely has a tough choice to make.
Bala Mohammed may have literally come to a critical juncture in his political career. At 67 years of age, and completing a second tenure as governor, there may be wisdom for him to strive to paddle his boat home in 2027 and mind his business for a short while thereafter.
Pursuing further negotiations on the sharing formula with the APC in Bauchi may offer him no joy in the fullness of time. Of course, he will find fellow stragglers in the APC if he goes there. Time will tell how far they can go.
The present politics of no honour, no principle, no qualms, no shame and no respect by otherwise seemingly responsible individuals, either for themselves or for the society, does not appear sustainable. For politicians who live for the moment, this may seem a far-fetched counsel, though.
